Lilly comes running out "We should let the cats out of their boxes." she says as she starts to cast another summon to at least distract the rats before they are eaten.
"I'm putting two gold coins on the rats winning that fight, but sure ..."
With some reluctance to his step, Estian goes about getting the cats ready and in position. There's no way he ain't getting his money back on this one!
Since the rats are not visible yet, Lilly instead looks to see if they can slam shut the hatches.
Sadly the gratings are probably too wide to really stop the rats. The clouds above are starting to look particularly ominous - the strange viridian tint to them is growing stronger...
"Fire? Rats hate fire, do we have anything to make torches or anything?" Lilly is thinking, quickly, if not well.
"On a ship? Are ye mad lass?" Brelkar yells back from the quaterdeck where he's wrestling with the wheel. "Damnit! If I just had ma' hook!"
While the others worry about the threat of rats, Maia looks with some concern at the sky. "When the clouds grow green, oh love, beware," she softly sings, "for the rain corrodes that falls from there..."
that's just a song, right... although, songs are often used to teach children real facts... better not to take any chances...
Suddenly looking rather anxious, the beautiful woman calls out, " Let the rain deal with the rats, we should get back inside the captain's quarters..."
Maia's warning comes not a moment too soon. Estian manages to dive into the quartermaster's stores in the forepeak along with three other prisoners just before a seething tide of rats erupts from the hatchway. They are met by a sudden, vicious burst of rain from the heavens. This rain hisses as it slams down, burning wood and flesh alike. For perhaps two minutes the ship is filled with the sound of screaming rats as the rodents take the brunt of the rain and either writhe on the deck or leap overboard to escape the rain that is killing them.
By the time the cloud passes it is clear that the rats were not the only casualties. Three people, two prisoners and one of the crew from the fore hold are lying unconscious on the deck, each and every one horrifically burned. Unfortunately there is not much time - looking ahead shows a mighty storm just off the bow...
"Who pissed off Gozreh this badly?" Lilly says in a voice heavy with awe. As it clears she sees the unconscious men and runs to them headless of the coming storm. Her prayers lost in the howling wind, her holy symbol in hand and...
All three stir feebly. The sailor - who seems to have weathered the rain better thanks to his sturdy clothes - stands slowly and picks up one of the former prisoners before making their slow and painful way into the captain's cabin. The remaining prisoner lies on the deck making pitiful moaning sounds - he is burned over a considerable portion of his torso and legs.
When Maia calls out the danger of the approaching storm it takes a moment for Bukis to respond, so focused on the rats he is. It takes someone else getting up and moving for him to realize the danger but once he does he quickly moves into action. Moving over to the remaining prisoner Bukis picks him up and helps get him out of the elements.
"Inside now!" He calls out to make sure everyone is aware of what is happening.
Not wanting to be one-upped in the heroics department by Bukis, Estian too makes an effort to rescue one of the badly burned prisoners. He could care less about the crew member, but the prisoner deserves an effort to be saved.
"OKAY!" Lilly yells over the wind, rushes back to the captain's cabin, sending another wave of healing to them if she can.
Maia stays by Lilly's side, her mostly useless shortsword in hand. She smiles when the healer's energy washes over her and does what she can to help Bukis and Estain get the survivors back to safety.
Bukis and Estian are able to get the remaining sailors under cover just as the Devils' Due noses its way into the storm! Rain continues to pummel the deck and the wind’s howl seems to be increasing. Without sails it is almost impossible to direct the ship as the current carries it towards an almost sheer curtain of lightning hammering down into the ocean as though determined to destroy the Devils’ Due and everyone aboard!
You all cower in the captains cabin as the staccato hammering of lightning strikes crash up the deck. The noise is deafening and then suddenly the vast noise of the storm vanishes and an eerie quiet falls. Peeking out from your meagre cover you see a strange sight, a graveyard. Mile upon mile of shattered hulls, broken spars, crates, barrels and all sorts of driftwood spread before you, thick enough to cover the surface of the ocean with a brown blanket. Behind you the storm rages and lightning flashes illuminate the sea but inside the eye of the storm all is quiet. As the Devil’s Due floats gently onwards it becomes clear that, for now at least, you have survived.
Suddenly there is a choked off scream as one of the surviving prisoners who has been hanging over the side being violently sick is pulled over the rail and vanishes into the water.
Craning over the side shows a scaly humanoid and at least two sharks ripping into the hapless man as his screams are brutally silenced. Another scream from the other side of the deck heralds another of the creatures clambering over the rail with a hungry glint in it its reptilian eyes.
Maia moves to the center of the ship and begins to sing a stirring ballad about a brave crew battling a sea monster while their ship is battered by a storm.
"What are they?!" Lilly asks as she openly gapes at the danger (being as slow as an upcoming holiday today).
Lilly remembers a conversation between her mothers. "It is a biological connect, a combination of smells and temperament." one would say in a firm but playful tone (one only used on the other or the daughter). "Spiritual dear" the other countered gently, leaving out details of her argument on purpose knowing the other would just try and pick them apart.
But they both agreed on the fact that Lilly yelled out "Sahuagins! They have an uncanny connection to sharks so stay out of the water! They also can go into a frenzy so be careful"
Estian and Bukis charge in, swinging cutlasses and scythes.
Estian lands a solid blow but the sahuagin deflects the scythe with its trident. Then it drops the weapon and lashes out at Estian with its fangs and teeth! The cavalier clings to consciousness by a thread!
Lilly winches as her fellow former slave is nearly eaten in a series of messy gobbling bites. The cleric of Desna rushes forward to heal him.
Maia winces in sync with Lilly as the creature tears into Estian. She continues singing as she moves to flank the creature with Bukis and stabs at it with her shortsword.
"At least we're not in the water where their sharks are." she offers to the bleeding warrior "Sharks love blood, can smell in the water from miles away, or so I've been told."
Reeling from what should've been a mortal blow, Estian puts up a fencing riposte. Unlike the actual rapier fighting style, this one is the result of the cavalier going into physical and mental shock.
Maia's blow bounces off the sahuagin's scales but Bukis buries his scythe between its raging eyes and the shark-man twitches as it dies. Unfortunately its companion seems to have finished off the hapless crewman and climbs over the other side railings with a vicious grin. It sets its trident - clearly ready for an attack.
With the memory of Estian getting savaged fresh in her mind, Maia weaves together her laughing spell once again.
Lilly keeps her hand pressed against Estian's back, praying some more, and closing a few more of his wounds. "There you go, a little better at least. More are coming, chin and go save the day now." she encourages the warrior as best as she can.
"He just got lucky he did!", Estian explains. It seems that not even he believes his own lie, but a man has to tell himself what he must in order to be able to go on.
Without missing a beat, Estian turns to face the sahuagin newcomer and deftly swings his cutlass about. "Hey you, yeah, you, you might want to jump overboard while you can still draw breath."
Do fishmen draw breath? Estian tries hard to avoid becoming confused by his own question. And wait, what spell is Maia casting?
Success: If you are successful, the target is shaken for one round. This duration increases by 1 round for every 5 by which you beat the DC. You can only threaten an opponent this way if it is within 30 feet and can clearly see and hear you. Using demoralize on the same creature only extends the duration; it does not create a stronger fear condition.
Fail: The opponent is not shaken.
Seeing Estian hit hard moves Bukis into action, he has no idea of who this person is but so far has been impressed by his willingness to jump in and fight as well as his continuing to stay in battle after taking a hit that would put many on the ground. Moving up towards the creature Bukis takes a strike with his Scythe. Sadly his enthusiasm does not translate into a hit as Bukis' wild swing almost results in his dropping his weapon.
The sahuagin retaliates with his trident as Bukis swings, jabbing the warrior hard in the chest. Then the creature drops its weapon and assails him with tooth and claw even as Estian threatens him with a fate worse than sushi!
With Maia's spell failing to effect the oceanspawn of Rovagug, Estian knows there's no other option but to once again jump into the fray. He does so, albeit with healthy hesitation.
Out of healing spells the ginger cleric debates on channeling, if she can find a spot she can do it without healing the enemy, or offering luck to the warriors.
Luck she decides is really needed right now, so she runs up to the fighters and wills some into ...
With Estian faring no better in his attacks Bukis knows he has no choice but to ignore his grievous wound and continue his own attacks. He does, however, call out his need for healing. "Heal!"
Att:
Dam:
Maia frowns nervously as she rushes over towards the very dangerous monster. Moving to flank it with Bukis, she does her best to stab it (though she's mostly hoping to help the half-orc hit).
Holding himself together and trying to ignore the blood leaking from his body Bukis flashes a grateful smile at Maia, the broken tusks don't add much to his intentions.
With a little luck from Lily Bukis lands a heavy blow on the sahuagin, allowing Maia to slip in and stab it through the throat! The shark-man collapses to the dead, gurgling on its life-blood.
The Devils’ Due keeps moving by inertia alone, leaving the spreading pools of blood on the surface of the sea behind. The ship noses gently into the great pile of flotsam and slowly judders to a halt. Looking around one thing is clear – without significant repairs this poor ship is never going to sail again. Momentum has pushed the ship a fair way into the driftwood - there's not chance of shark attacks at least, but posting a watch is going to be vital tonight!
---------------------------------------------------------------
The next morning the sun shines dimly down through the omnipresent clouds to illuminate a huge island of driftwood. The shattered corpses of hundreds of ships and the debris of a thousand close calls have jammed together to create something very close to solid ground. In places ropes and poles show signs of deliberate construction and reinforcement of the natural trends within the eye.
From the vantage point of the Devils’ Due a few sights are obvious. To the west stands a single solitary mast, jutting out from the surrounding flatlands. Towards the centre of the island is a distinct mound, capped with a tendril of smoke, the only sign of living beings that can be seen.
Bukis volunteers for first watch, he is still keyed up from the combat and he wouldn't be able to sleep anyway. During the night he walks restlessly trying to keep an eye on the others in the group as well as the surrounding area. Once his turn at watch is over he wakes the next person and gets what rest he can. His main concern is for those who helped keep the ship going during the storm and fight the Sahaugin. The others he doesn't trust, feeling their only concern is for themselves and not the group as a whole.
Keeping Watch:
In the morning he surveys the scenery better than he could the night before. "Enough wood. Repairs then explore?" He asks this of whomever else is awake but will give everyone a chance to voice an opinion before a decision is reached.
”I can see pretty well in the dark,” Maia offers when conversation about keeping watch starts, ”but I’m not much of a look out... maybe I could be partners with someone?”
"I'll share a watch with you, Maia." Lilly offers, having neither of her mother's great night vision. She spends a few moments shifting through the captain's quarters to find something to wear other than the potato sack slave garb she is in at the moment. Everything is too big but a big shirt and a trimmed down belt works in her current pinch. Then she settles down and closes her eyes almost immediately.
In the morning, she says "If there are people on that island, I think we should start with them. I don't have a wooden thumb, or at least not much of one, so help is our best choice." she looks at the others to see if they agree.
Maia and Lilli take the final watch and, as the sky behind the almost omnipresent clouds lightens, Brelkar appears on deck. The dwarf seems to be carrying out a one-dwarf survey of the ship, stomping around and muttering to himself. He vanishes down into the bowels of the ship numerous times and finally reappears just as the four of you are preparing to head out. By this point almost all the survivors, some score of people including Trinan and Lightfoot, are milling around on deck.
Brelkar pushes his way through the throng and addresses himself to Maia.
"So, Cap’n. The ship’s in a bad way. Hull staved in near four feet long and that’s not the worst of it. Both masts snapped like twigs and carried all the rope work with it. It’s going to take a powerful amount o’ work to get things fixed up. This ‘ere is just the start. We’ll need cable, nails by the barrel and plenty o’ tools, but at least we can get the raw materials together.”
He hands over a scrap of paper that he must have claimed from the captain's cabin - it lists a daunting amount of raw materials and a number of more specilised items. Getting the ship going again is going to be no easy task.
Salvage is worth 250gp in trade, although desperate buyers may pay considerably more and well-resourced ships much less.
Muttering breaks out across the assembled group and one of the sailors calls out. "Hey, who made her Captain? We're the ones who know how to sail the barkey! One of us should be in charge! Jeren should be captain, he's sailed these waters for years!" This announcement gets approving calls from most of the other sailors as they clap Jeren, a short thickset sailor who you all saw working the hold last night, on the back. The former prisoners meanwhile, look to you for leadership...
"Hello Jeren!" Lilly waves to the sailor, with a beaming smile. "I don't doubt you are a good sailor, and even better you stayed instead of trying to flee. But do you want to be the one to fight those things..." she waves to the stains on the deck where the shark friends died. "Or worse?" she lets that hang for a moment "Maia has already and will keep doing so because that is who she is... I will follow her." she looks back at her friend and smiles.
Maia freezes for a moment at being called captain. Her mind races as the dwarf goes over all that needs to be done and by the time that Jeren is put forth as an alternative she's almost relieved at the prospect. Then she considers what type of ship it had been, and what brought most of the survivors aboard it...
"Jeren, I have no doubt, is a fine sailor and would make a fine sailing master, or perhaps even first mate," the beautiful woman announces to everyone on deck, "but a captain doesn't sail the ship. Captains provide leadership... captains care for the crew- keeping up morale, making sure we all work together to survive, speaking on all our behalf when there's other captains to deal with or ports to sail into. It was never my intention to captain a ship, but after last night I know that I can provide that leadership. We will never get out of this alive unless all of us can work together. There's no more 'sailors and slaves' here, now we're all survivors, and together as survivors we need to agree on a captain. If you all will accept my leadership, I promise: to continue to keep us working together, as I did last night; to appoint skilled people to the jobs where their skills will serve us all the best; and, to do everything in my power to get every single one of us out of here alive, and free."
Trinan leads a cheer which the freed slaves join in. Jeren nods and applauds firmly which seems to win the rest of the sailors over. They don't seem entirely enthused, but they are at least on board - both physically and figuratively.
Looking out across the driftwood towards the smoke it is clear that the way ahead is going to be difficult.
Looking around at the large amounts of wood Bukis only half hears what is being said about someone being a Captain, it wouldn't be him, he knows he is to hot-headed to have that type of responsibility, to straightforward in his solutions. But when he hears Lilly nominate Maia he starts to listen and when Maia gives her acceptance speech he knows that she would make a good Captain. Moving over to stand next to her and making sure that Lilly is there as well he pulls out his scythe before throwing his support her way. "I agree. Maia should be Captain. "
Bukis knows he is not a great speaker, in his case actions truly do speak louder than words and he used up just about all the words he's going to, he doesn't want to start a fight this soon after yesterday's events but he is ready to stand up for his beliefs, he is being as diplomatic as he knows how. However he realizes that his words need to be backed up by action and he has spent spent enough time to understand that if he can't convince them with words he might be able to persuade them with actions. However when he thinks of the skills or contests he might impress them with he realizes that the ship is no longer able to support. Reluctantly he attempts to be diplomatic in resolving this conflict, looking directly at Jeren he does the best he can."First Mate, you?"
After the speech, Lilly gives Maia a deep curtsey in her makeshift dress "All Hail Captain Blackwing, queen of the debris seas." she rises and gives her friend a grin. "Captain Blackwing does have a ring to it. Now, where to Captain."